As a part of its mandate to improve service, the CFPSA accounting office in Ottawa is amalgamating its accounting functions with the Ontario region office and the Canadian Forces Support Unit – Ottawa (CFSU(O)).

As of December, basic accounting transactions such as inputting accounts payable and accounts receivable and recording of basic transaction data will be performed at the regional office at CFB Borden or CFSU(O). Control of banking operations and responsibility for Canadian Forces Central Fund (CFCF) investments will remain with Finance Division’s Investment Accounting Manager.

Gilles Déry, CFPSA Accounting Services Manager (ASM) is upbeat about the move. "We’ll be able to streamline our services and make better use of facilities and resources already in place," he says. "In the long run, it will save the agency money and lead to better service."

Déry says the changes, which took place in December, will have a minimal impact on employees. One person will remain at CFPSA headquarters for pick-up and dropoff services. One person moved to CFSU(O) and the rest of the full-time staff moved to fill other positions within the Agency.

CFPSA personnel located at the Ottawa office will still bring their accounting documents (requests for payments and invoices) to the ASM who will forward them promptly to CFSU(O) for processing. The payment of invoices or claims will continue to be paid diligently via the regional office.

All accounting transactions will be monitored and controlled by the regional accounting office while the reporting, including the preparation of financial reports for the Chief Financial Officer and other divisions and the processing of monthly recovery costs from the corporate account for PSP personnel, will be handled by the ASM and his staff.

Division Managers will still rely on the ASM for assistance with their accounting needs and requests for information as the ASM will have access to the accounting database of all Divisions, and will be able to produce timely information for customers.